Will Piedmont’s houses become commercialized?

Per City Council direction, staff will introduce for Planning Commission comment, discussion, and direction the topic of short-term rentals of properties in Piedmont.

Monday, September 8, 2014, the Piedmont Planning Commission will discuss short-term rentals of Piedmont housing.  Currently, there are restrictions on these increasingly popular rentals.  Complaints based on noise, unfamiliar individuals in neighborhoods, taxis, crime potentials, irregular comings and goings, and parking issues have been received by the City Council, staff, and Planning Commission. Benefits appear to go to the owner/lister while presenting problems for others.

Piedmont, long established as a primarily single-family residential city, has for a century spurned commercial encroachment on the City’s character. Use of housing for private gain while disadvantaging neighboring home owners has increasing been difficult to thwart due to internet promotion.  Money made from short-term rentals is sometimes viewed by individual homeowners as a lucrative way to off-set high mortgage payments and property tax demands.

The Piedmont City Council has asked the Planning Commission to consider the pros and cons of short-term rentals and provide advice.

The short-term rental agenda item is #10, the last item of the Planning Commission agenda at the September 8 meeting. The public is welcome  to attend or view on KCOM or on the City website :

 “you might want to tune into KCOM, cable 20 or by logging onto the city’s website at www.ci.piedmont.ca.us: on the right hand side of the homepage under the “City Council” heading, click on the “Online Video” link, then scroll down under the “Sections on this Page” heading, click on the “Planning Commission” link, then on the “September 8, 2014” heading, click on the “In Progress” (live) link, and be prepared to come on down to City Hall as the meeting progresses closer to Agenda #10.”

Some of the companies providing short-term rentals are: Airbnb, Flipkey, Craigslist,HomeAway, Roomorama, Stopsleepgo, TravelMob, BedyCasa, ZenRentals, WaytoStay, Interhome, Windu Tripping.com.

How are Short Term Rentals Currently Regulated in Piedmont?

– Renting a Portion of the House: Piedmont residents wishing to rent out a room in their house for fewer than 30 days may not do so pursuant to Section 17.39.2:17.39.2  The owner of a single family dwelling unit in any zoning district is permitted to rent one or more bedrooms in the dwelling unit, when the circumstances fit the definition of a rented room at Section 17.2.58B:

Rented room means the renting of a room or any combination of rooms within an existing single-family dwelling where:

(a) one or more rooms, including at least one bedroom eligible for use as a bedroom, is rented to a single lessee under a single rental agreement, not for the entire dwelling;

(b) for a minimum of 30 consecutive days;

(c) with the common use of the primary kitchen facilities, and with no temporary or permanent cooking facilities in the rented room(s);

(d) with either shared or separate bathroom

– Renting the Entire House: Property owners who wish to rent their entire house may currently do so for any amount of time.

– Renting an Existing Approved Second Unit That is Not a Rent- Restricted Unit – Owners with a legally approved second unit (not including rent-restricted units) may currently rent it for any amount of time.

“It is important to note that any rental, whether for one year or one day, is subject to Piedmont’s rental tax.”

A recent scan of listings in Piedmont on one website, Airbnb.com, showed 8 listings.

“It is not easy to tell what the addresses for these properties are (you must book the rental in order to get an address), but from the map, it does not appear that the current listings match the locations where we have received resident complaints, indicating that there are more properties with such listings. This is just one of the companies (and it tends to have the most market share), but it can be assumed that there are listings on Craigslist, and other internet-based sites.”

Piedmont Planning staff believes that currently, most of the owners of these short-term rentals are not paying rental taxes. Of six known, or strongly suspected property owners who are renting to short-term renters, four have not yet paid a rental tax on their properties, although two property owners who were advised by the City of the regulations, submitted Intent to Rent forms.

Effect on Housing Element – 

“In addition to the concerns expressed by Piedmont residents, staff have concerns about the effect on the City’s housing supply, especially the more affordable second units. The City has worked hard at meeting our Regional Housing Needs Assessment by providing second units and room rentals (for more than 30 days) as a way of providing lower cost housing while maintaining Piedmont’s single-family character, without the requirement of up-zoning that has occurred in other communities. Each house, second unit or room rental that is rented for short periods to different people, are units that are not providing needed housing to people who wish to reside in and create ties with the community.”

Given the direction by the City Council for an examination of this issue, there are several options offered by  the Planning Department for Commission and Council consideration:

– Prohibit all rentals for fewer than 30 days. This would require a Code change to prohibit single-family residences and second units from being rented for fewer than 30 days. Staff would need to work with the City Attorney so that the policies are developed in compliance with State and Federal law.

– Permit An Entire House to be Rented for fewer than 30 days. No change in the Municipal Code is needed, as this is currently allowed. However, the City might wish to consider a registration requirement, regular safety inspections and either the creation of an occupancy tax, which is assessed up-front, or the current rental tax. The current rental tax is assessed annually based on rent collected for the prior year. The tax is a minimum of $200 or gross receipts multiplied by .01395, whichever is greater. Property owners are required to provide tax receipts, lease agreements, or the Federal Form 1040 as proof of rent collected.

– Permit Second Units that are not Rent-Restricted to be Rented for fewer than 30 days –  No change in the Municipal Code is needed, as this is currently allowed. However, the City might wish to consider a registration requirement, regular safety inspections and either the creation of an occupancy tax, which is assessed up-front, or the current rental tax.

– Permit a Room or Rooms to be Rented for fewer than 30 days – This would require an amendment to Section 17.39 of the Municipal Code. Additionally, the City might wish to consider a registration requirement, regular safety inspections and either the creation of an occupancy tax, which is assessed up-front, or the current rental tax.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Comments addressing the issue may be sent to the Planning Commission through Kate Black at kblack@ci.piedmont.ca.us or via a phone call to her at 420-3063.

Members of the Planning Commission are:

Phillip Chase, Susan Ode (Chair), Louise Simpson, Tony Theophilos, Tom Zhang, and Eric Behrens (Alternate)

Council Liaison is Tim Rood – 239-7663

How do you know if the plan is okay?

Piedmonters should take a look at the Draft Piedmont Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan to find out if changes are suggested for their neighborhood or public facilities.  Will your street be changed?

After numerous meetings, Piedmont’s Draft Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan will be considered for environmental review with a goal of meeting California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) qualifications.

Piedmont Planning Commission Meeting

Monday, September 8 – 5:00 p.m. City Council Chambers

 CEQA consideration is the first item on the agenda.

Piedmont has benefited from residents identifying activities that appear suspicious.  It’s important to report suspicious or unusual behavior.  Your eyes and ears expand the ability of our police to reduce crime.

Do not hesitate to call the Police Department at either 911 or 420-3000.

The Public Safety Committee (PSC) will meet on Thursday, August 28 at 5:30 p.m. in the Council Chambers, 120 Vista Avenue.  The meeting will not be broadcast, video recorded, or live streamed, however the public is welcome to participate and address issues of interest.  The Committee has come up with many innovative suggestions on how to increase public safety awareness in Piedmont.

AGENDA INCLUDES:

– Discussion of Harvest Festival Participation 

– Discussion of Planning for Piedmont Night Out – Piedmont has never held “National Night Out” neighborhood public safety gatherings.  October is being discussed as a possible month when Piedmonters would actively participate in a Piedmont Night Out.

– Update on School Liaison Activities

– Update on Neighborhood Meetings 

– Discussion of Managing Solicitors

PSC Committee Members: Scott Fitzgerell, Police Chief Rikki Goede, Michael Gardner, Ryan Gilbert, Garrett Keating, Sue Lin, Fire Chief Bud McLaren, Andrea Swenson (School Board Represenative), Lyman Shaffer, Chair

Council Liaison:  Mayor Margaret Fujioka 

Piedmont’s Draft Pedestrian and Bicycle Plan (PBMP) will be presented to the Piedmont Unified School District (PUSD) Board of Education.  The meeting will be held on Wednesday, August 20, at 7 p.m., in the City Hall Council Chambers (120 Vista Avenue). The presentation to the PUSD Board will focus on improvements for creating “Safe Routes to School” to encourage Piedmont youth to walk or bike to school. The meeting will be broadcast on Channel 27, recorded, and live streamed on the City website. 

Draft Piedmont Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan (This is a large document, which may take several minutes to download)

Appendices: Comments received through the two online surveys on the needs assessment and on the improvement options

More information about the PBMP is available from Kate Black at kblack@ci.piedmont.ca.us or at (510) 420-3063. To be added to the email list for the project, contact Janet Chang at janetchang@ci.piedmont.ca.us or at (510) 420-3094.

Increases will be 4.57 % in 2015 and 5 % in 2016.

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC ) unanimously approved Pacific Gas and Electric’s (PG&E) request for increased rates. PG&E rates for all customers will increase 4.57 percent in 2015 and 5 percent in 2016. (PG&E had asked for rate increases of 5.9 percent for 2015 and 6.1 percent for 2016.)

The initial increase begins September, 2015.  PG&E estimates the average residential customer who pays $129 per month for its gas and electricity bill will see an increased charge of $7.50 per month next fall (2015).

PG&E service area covers over a 70,000 square mile area stretching from Eureka to Bakersfield with 15 million people.

CPUC released the following statement on the increase:

“After reviewing the findings of independent safety consultants and others, the CPUC adopted revenue requirements that balance the priorities of safety and reliability with just and reasonable rates. PG&E requested a 17.5 percent increase ($1.16 billion) over the currently approved revenue requirement for 2014-2016. The CPUC reduced PG&E’s revenue increase request by $700 million, authorizing an increase of $460 million, which is an increase of 6.9 percent over the currently authorized revenue requirement. The decision approved attrition increases of 4.57 percent for 2015 and 5 percent for 2016. PG&E requested attrition increases of 5.9 percent for 2015 and 6.1 percent for 2016.

Rate cases for PG&E are conducted in three-year cycles. For the first time in a rate case the CPUC retained outside experts to evaluate risk assessment, risk mitigation, programs and policies, as well as PG&E’s corporate policies, goals, culture, and the efforts being made to bolster PG&E’s system safety and reliability. The findings of the consultants, along with those of the CPUC’s Office of Ratepayer Advocates, TURN, and other intervenors were important factors in determining the appropriate level of funding to authorize.

Today’s decision authorized programs to increase the safe operation of PG&E’s system in a cost-effective manner and hold PG&E accountable for the safe operation of its system. The programs focus on infrastructure upgrades and improvements and include the creation of a Gas Distribution Control Center to provide real-time visibility and remote control of dynamic gas pressure and flows within PG&E’s system; tools to meet a superior standard of safety in detection and repair of gas distribution pipeline hazardous leaks; the acceleration of the replacement of aging distribution pipeline; tools to reduce electric outages and mitigate wildfire risk; and the replacement of poles previously scheduled for replacement in prior years (a reduction was adopted, however, to assign a share of responsibility to PG&E shareholders, rather than ratepayers, for pole replacement deferrals previously funded by ratepayers).

The CPUC’s decision also includes requirements and rate-making mechanisms that will increase the accountability of PG&E and help ensure that PG&E is using the increased revenues prudently and effectively, as well as several requirements that will improve the showing on safety and risk in PG&E’s next rate case.”

After an extensive recruitment and selection process, long time Piedmont resident Sara Lillevand has been selected by the City Council to be Piedmont’s new Recreation Director.  Lillevand has two children in the Piedmont schools.

City of Piedmont Press Release

CITY COUNCIL SELECTS SARA LILLEVAND

AS RECREATION DIRECTOR

Following a rigorous recruitment process, the City Council has selected Sara Lillevand as Recreation Director of the City of Piedmont. Ms. Lillevand was chosen unanimously by the Council from a field of 50 candidates. Her formal appointment will be made at the City Council meeting of September 2, 2014.

This selection follows interviews of five highly qualified candidates by a City Council subcommittee and the City Administrator, a panel of residents, and the City’s management team.

Following that process, the candidate field was narrowed to two, who were then interviewed by the full City Council. Ms. Lillevand’s selection by the City Council was unanimous and all agreed that she will be a great asset to the community and the Recreation Department.

Ms. Lillevand was educated at Stanford and U.C. Davis, and holds a Master of Science in Physical Therapy from Boston University. For the past 14 months, she has served as the Director of Athletics for California State University East Bay. Prior to that she served as Associate Director of Athletics as well as Head Women’s Basketball Coach and Kinesiology Instructor.

Prior to joining CSU East Bay in 1997, she worked at UC Davis and Wellesley College as Assistant Basketball Coach and at the Lucille Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford as a Physical Therapist. Ms. Lillevand grew up in Piedmont and is a graduate of Bishop O’Dowd High School.

“We are pleased that we had such a highly qualified pool of candidates, in particular Ms.Lillevand,” said Mayor Margaret Fujioka. “I would like to express my appreciation to members of the Council subcommittee, Councilmembers Bob McBain and Teddy Gray King; as well as the members of the interview panels including Recreation Commissioners Nick Levinson and Kim Hebert, former Recreation Commissioner Dick Hunt, PHS Assistant Athletic Director Megan Hernandez, and Amy Wooldridge, Recreation and Parks Director for the City of Alameda.”

“Each of the finalists was highly qualified,” said City Administrator Paul Benoit. “Piedmont would have been well served with each of them, however Ms. Lillevand distinguished herself among this outstanding group.”

“I am honored to have been selected as Piedmont’s Recreation Director,” Ms. Lillevand said.

“Piedmont is a wonderful community with an excellent Recreation Department and I look forward to serving the City.”

For further information, contact City Administrator Paul Benoit at 420-3040.

After months of outreach, surveys, community involvement, and meetings, Piedmont’s Draft Pedestrian and Bike Plan will be considered by and presented to the  Piedmont Planning Commission at their Monday, August 11 meeting starting at 5:00 p.m. in the Council Chambers.  The meeting will be broadcast via Channel 27 and live streamed from the City’s website.  A retrievable video recording will be made of the meeting.

Dangerous crosswalk on Moraga Avenue

Get involved—these are your streets and sidewalks. Your voice is important!

After a months-long planning process, the Draft Piedmont Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan is now available for public review and comment. The Draft Plan outlines the recommended pedestrian and bicycle improvements to be carried out in Piedmont over the next ten years. The Draft Plan can be accessed at the following links:

Draft Piedmont Pedestrian and Bicycle Master Plan (This is a large document, which may take several minutes to download)

Appendices: Comments received through the two online surveys on the needs assessment and on the improvement options

The Draft Plan will be presented at the August meeting of the Planning Commission. The meeting will be held onMonday, August 11, 2014 at 5 pm in the Council Chambers in Piedmont City Hall (120 Vista Avenue). At the meeting, the City’s consultant on the plan will summarize the contents of the Draft Plan and be available to answer questions. The public is invited to the meeting to learn more about the Draft Plan and to provide any comments.

To submit comments on the Draft Plan to the Planning Commission, please either email your comments to City Planner Kate Black at kblack@ci.piedmont.ca.us or mail them to 120 Vista Avenue, Piedmont, CA 94611 by Friday, October 3.

Additionally, the Draft Plan will also be presented to the Board of Education of the Piedmont Unified School District (PUSD). The meeting will be held on Wednesday, August 20, at 7  p.m. also at the City Hall Council Chambers (120 Vista Avenue). The presentation to the PUSD Board will focus on improvements for creating “Safe Routes to School” to encourage Piedmont youth to walk or bike to school.

The CEQA document will be posted online and available for public review by the September 8 Planning Commission meeting. The CEQA document and any revisions to the Draft Plan will be presented at this meeting, including possible changes resulting from Commission and resident comments.

This Final Plan and CEQA document will be presented again to the Planning Commission at their October 13 meeting, and subsequently to the City Council for official adoption by the City.

For more information about the PBMP, contact Kate Black at kblack@ci.piedmont.ca.us or at (510) 420-3063. If you would like to stay up to date on the development of the plan, contact Janet Chang at janetchang@ci.piedmont.ca.usor at (510) 420-3094 to be added to the email list for the project.

The PBMP is being funded entirely through a grant from the Alameda County Transportation Commission (CTC; www.alamedactc.org) and through the City’s existing funds for pedestrian and bicycle improvements (pass-through Measure B funds), also distributed by the Alameda CTC.

Information above provided by the Piedmont Planning Department

Uneven sidewalks especially challenge young and old pedestrians

 

 –  Wednesday,  August 6,  CIP Review Committee will once more meet at 5:30 p.m. in the small City Council Conference Room to discuss possible projects eligible for Measure WW Funding.  –

~~ Capital Improvement Projects (CIP) ~~

The CIP Review Committee plays an important role in recommending to the City Council many of Piedmont’s expensive capital improvement projects.

A long laundry list of projects ranging from curtains to safety matters have been discussed.

At previous meetings, interest focused on needed improvements particularly to Hampton Field, where water and sand has harmed the tennis courts presenting dangers and the outfield is rendered useless during wet weather. The large cost of Hampton rehabilitation would likely require phasing of the work.

Funds derived from the East Bay Regional Park District’s voter approved WW Bond measure can be used by Piedmont for specific projects. (Read about the project list.)  Piedmont’s entitlement is $507,000.

The CIP Review Committee meeting is open to the public.  However, The Brown Act meeting notice requirement appears to have been breached as time, date and location of the meeting was announced but timely notice of the meeting agenda was not distributed to aid citizens interested in participating in the meeting.  Prior CIP meetings have been held in locations outside of general public view. None of the Committee’s meetings have been broadcast or recorded.

The majority of the members on the CIP Review Committee are composed of those from the Park Commission or Beautification Foundation. There is no active representation from the Planning Commission or the Budget Advisory and Financial Planning Committee.

Following an interview process, four members of the seven member CIP Review Committee were appointed by the City Council.  They are: John Cooper (Chair), Ryan Gilbert (member of the Public Safety Committee), Bobbe Stehr (former member of the Planning Commission and member of the Piedmont Beautification Foundation) and Jamie Totsubo (member of the Park Commission).

Piedmont Garden Club’s Piedmont Beautification Foundation appointee:  Michelle Winchester (President of the Piedmont Beautification Foundation)

Park Commission representative: Sue Herrick (Chair of the Park Commission and member of the Piedmont Beautification Foundation)

Recreation Commission representative: Nick Levinson (Chair of the Recreation Commission)

City Council liaison observer: Vice Mayor Jeff  Wieler alternate: Councilmember Teddy King 

Staff to the CIP Review Committee are:

 Chester Nakahara (W) 420-3061 & Mark Feldkamp (W) 420-3064

– Where does it all go?  What should be recycled?  What should be composted? – 

League of Women Voters View Recycling and Compost Operations

On a recent tour of Republic Services’ recycling and compost operations in the city of Richmond, members of the Piedmont League of Women Voters got a close-up look at the massive and complex business of sorting, storing and transporting our discarded cans, bottles and paper and composting our food and garden waste. The group also learned first-hand what should and should not go in recycling and green-waste bins.

Peter Nuti, a 30-year Republic Services employee and currently Municipal Relations and Contract Manager, led the tour, patiently answering dozens of questions. Republic Services acquired Piedmont’s former contracted waste collection firm, Richmond Sanitary Services, in 2001 and has had a waste collection contract with Piedmont since 2001.

The company, headquartered in Phoenix, is the second largest waste collection firm in the U.S. First on the tour was a cavernous, high-ceiling, aluminum warehouse, where all curbside recycling trucks unload their daily collections. The loads are metered and transferred to a conveyer belt that screens and successively drops out garbage, paper, bottles and cans. Cardboard and non-recyclables are pulled out by hand. Larger plastic containers, those labeled PET #1 and #2, go to a different sorter and ultimately are sent to a processor to be converted into a raw material. The plastic is shredded, washed and made into products, such as carpet fibers. The final separator screens and breaks up glass, and a “waterfall” sucks up the smallest pieces of debris. Mountains of paper are stacked in the warehouse by forklift operators, packed onto pallets for transport to the port of Oakland and from there most likely shipped to Asia to be remade into new paper products.

According to Peter Nuti, there are strong markets for newspapers, cardboard and PET #1 and #2 plastics. “We have to close the loop,” he said, “by buying recycled products and products with less packaging.”

From the warehouse, Mike Davenport, President, Davenport Securities whose company provides security for both Republic Services’ operational sites, drove League members to the composting area, located high above the Bay, atop a 356-acre, capped landfill. Surrounded by 2-story hills of maturing compost, Nuti explained the process of transforming food and green waste into reusable compost. Through various stages, the mountains of waste are separated and ground into small pieces of similar size and texture.

In one critical stage, pieces of plastic, the bane of compost, are separated out by hand. Wood products, such as plywood and wood pallets, are ground into chips for erosion control products or shipped to co-generation electric plants farther north for fuel. During the 90-day composting process, the material is monitored daily to ensure it is not overheating and tested periodically for contaminates such as pesticides, chemicals, or salt. The final compost product is sold wholesale by the cubic yard to wineries, farmers, and the general public ($12 to $18 per cubic yard). The compost dregs that contain plastic and cannot be sold are used as cover at Republic Services’ Keller Canyon Landfill in Pittsburg.

Republic Services produces its own electricity from methane gas released by garbage in the closed landfill and uses reclaimed water collected during the rainy season and wastewater from Contra Costa County Waste Water District The company is working on a new system to collect “industrial organic waste” (food waste) from restaurants and grocery stores to compost.

Asked about the economics and environmental costs of recycling, Nuti acknowledged that recycling processes do require more energy, water and labor than burying waste in the ground. “But, he said, “Recycling paper saves a lot of trees; recycling aluminum, for example, saves 90 percent of the energy required to produce aluminum from bauxite. And composting enables us to recover and utilize the nutrients from the green/food waste.

Furthermore,” he said, “with the high cost of buying, permitting and operating a landfill, it’s important to us to recycle everything we possibly can.” The view from the compost facility looks out on the barren hills of the vast Richmond landfill created by garbage collected from the 1940s until September 2006.

Recycling and Green Waste Tips from Republic Services:

• The less paper in green waste, the better for composting.

• Some paper plates and utensils that are labeled “compostable” or “biodegradable” are not what they claim and not worth buying. Better to purchase old-fashioned paper plates.

• Badly soiled paper plates, pizza boxes and other such paper products can go in the green waste bin. If they are relatively clean, they should go in the blue recycling bin.

• Not all compost pail liner bags are biodegradable, as claimed. Use green “Bio Bags” (available at Piedmont Grocery, Berkeley Bowl) newspaper or a paper bag for pail liners.

• No need to rinse cans and bottles before placing them in the recycling bin. Put plastic bottle caps back on the bottles.

• Milk cartons and ice cream cartons have interior plastic linings and are not compostable. They should go in the blue bin.

• Better to buy milk in plastic containers that can be recycled instead of cartons.

• Juice pouches are not recyclable. Do not buy them!

• Large, plastic containers, such as for yogurt, are easier to recycle than small ones.

• Combine all junk mail and shredded paper into a paper bag for recycling. No need to shred paper for privacy purposes.

• Plastic bags should be combined, “bag in bag in bag,” and tightly knotted before putting in recycling bin.

• Used aluminum foil should be balled into larger balls and put in recycling bin.

• Do not put auto parts, garden hoses, or barbecues in the recycling bin! (Yes, people do!)

• Think big! Combine like items together into larger packages to recycle.

And purchase larger sizes to discourage production of small sizes. Since manufacturers track the type of containers you buy, “Vote with your dollar.”

League members and Republic Services staff

Information provided by the Piedmont League of Women Voters

Emphasis added.